The simple joys.

Thanks to Tom Furman and Fireman Tom Corrigan for finding this clip.

Back pain is unique. When your lower back says no everything else sits down and waits til central command says they can it again.You don't really notice how EVERYTHING is connected to the lower back until it spasms when you move anything.
Monday was alright, I was moving better but it still didnt feel 'right'. I did my light swing workout and it was alright during but locked up pretty tight Monday night. When sitting hurts and laying on your back is relieving you're at one level of forked up. When laying flat on you back hurts you are in trouble, and that's where I was Monday night.
The only position that didnt hurt was kneeling and now that I think about it that's pretty ironic. I was kneeling by my head praying ,although not conciously, that my back would go back into place and the spasms go away. All I wanted was the easy mobility I have been having for the last year or so, and while not taking it for granted at all, I was still not groking the exquisite joy that just not being in pain represents! Just being able to move and sit and bend and walk and lay without wincing your way through every millimeter.It's impossible to remember how pain feels, which, I guess what makes it bearable over the long haul. As soon as it's gone it's gone.

And it's gone. Tracy spent almost an hour working on my deep hip rotators and piriformis and it did the trick. I thought the pain was coming from my back but it was my glutes and external rotators that were locking up my back. ONce they released the back followed! Amazing.

I also "Sarno'ed" it quite a bit and looked deep into what was bothering me on any level and tried to let that go. I honestly think that was as much to do with the back unlocking as any bodywork I did. Lots of drama going on everywhere it seems and although I didnt think it was getting to me, obviously it did.
But Monday was great and I could move normally again; as if the incident never happened! Don't look a gift horse in the mouth,especially when they are taking knife out of your spine.

SO, decided to press swing and snatch a little. Get back on the horse.My overhead positon has changed greatly since the Hartman article and I wanted to try to press again. Enter the Kettlebell is such a great basic kb template that I would really like to be able to do more pressing.I was watching the humerus, elbow and kb postition in the video of the old Girevik and was playing with some ideas I had that I thought migh allow me to press.

Clean and press
18x5/5
26x5/5x2
36x4/4
44x4/4
x3/3
x2/2
36x4/4

these felt great. really concentrated on keeping the HUMERUS vertical in the rack position and letting the forearm come across my chest at an angle, like the catch position of the old girevik.I also shrugged UP as I press and was very suprised how much decompression it gave to my shoulder and let me press pain free! The bell ended up closer to my head than previously. A much better overhead position.
I pulled the shoulder back into the socket, as per Pavel's advice and as I do on the Hartman stick press/overhead shrug, before the negative. The negative was a mirror image of the positive rep; humerus vertical not forearm.
I have such a large carry angle that this makes sense.My elbows hyperextend a alot.

Swing Snatch
26x5/5
36x5/5x3
44x3/3x2
36x8/8

these went well too and I was nervous. Back was feeling absolutely normal. How strange.IN fact I am considerably LOOSER than normal. Course that could be cause I havent trained hard in a week :)) Focused on holding the overhead position and pulling the shoulder into the socket before the down swing.

One arm swings
26x10/10
36x10/10x2
44x8/8x3

two hand swings
44x10x3

I had a hunch about these too and they worked very well.

Stick press
face pulls

4 supersets

KB Bottoms up press( two hands, one bell)
26x5x3 sets

Kb triceps extension( on floor, one bell)
18x8/8
26x8/8x2

I have found my new favorite tricep exercise!These didnt hurt the shoulders at all. Reminds me of the rolling db extensions I used to do. The kb is great because there is constant but changing resisitance through the whole ROM


Rack Walks
36#x 400 foot laps( 200 each arm)x3 =1200 feet

these went easy.

bw 161.4
bf8.9%
water 60.8%

Man I am SO happy to feel normal and be able to train again and so happy my press feel decent again.